Korea - Japchae

This dish uses Korean Glass Noodles made from Sweet Potato Starch. They're transparent when cooked which looks strange but I'm interested to try them in this stir fry.

Glass Noodles

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces frying steak 
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• ¾ teaspoon black pepper 
• 3½ tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 onion 
• 2 carrots 
• 1 package green beans
• 1 small red bell pepper
• 4 ounces baby spinach
• 250g glass noodles
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

 

Firstly, cut the steak up into thin strips and place in a bowl. Mix in the garlic powder, sesame oil, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper.

Saute the steak in some oil until it's browned.

While it's sizzling away you can start chopping up the other vegetables thinly.

Cook the glass noodles according to the packet instructions. Add the vegetables to the pan with the steak and stir fry until cooked through. Add the spinach last for just a few minutes to wilt it..

Drain and add the glass noodles, also adding the remaining sugar and soy sauce. Toss everything well, sprinkle with some of the sesame seeds and serve!

JD and I love stir fries so we were keen to try this one. The beef smelled delicious as it cooked and we were practically drooling as it was served. The steak and vegetables didn't disappoint, they were delicious with the simple sauce from the soy sauce coating everything beautifully. I really didn't like the glass noodles though! The texture of them was like warm, savoury gummy bears. Too chewy and kind of slimy. It was a shame because they'd soaked up the sauce really well but I couldn't eat more than a few mouthfuls of them. Luckily there was plenty of steak and veg to save the meal :)